


wait a minute mr. postman

by y0u_idjits



Series: the whole package [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: ....for now, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Din Djarin the postman, Grogu is mentioned but doesn't appear, Leia likes to meddle, Luke Skywalker is a Sweetheart, Luke is not as hopeless as he seems, M/M, Romance, din and luke are just cute, droids are dogs in this au, hence din's dislike of them, no beta we die like troopers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-15 05:28:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29928603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/y0u_idjits/pseuds/y0u_idjits
Summary: “Please explain to me how and why you’re in love with your postman,” she gasps, tears running down her cheeks.“He had some letters I needed to sign for,” Luke tells her, steeling himself for more laughter, “and I answered the door in my boxers.”
Relationships: Din Djarin/Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa & Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa/Han Solo, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Series: the whole package [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2204097
Comments: 68
Kudos: 353





	wait a minute mr. postman

**Author's Note:**

  * For [drunkoncoffee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/drunkoncoffee/gifts).



> title from 'wait a minute mr postman' - the marvelettes

If he’s being completely honest, Luke’s not the best at taking care of himself. Looking back, it’s easy to come to this conclusion when you consider the life decisions he’s made up to this point. Running away at nineteen to find his long lost sister with the first two guys he meets with a piece of junk van, the car crash that led to him losing his hand, the completely masochistic decision to do a PhD - you get the picture. 

The point is, Luke’s not great at recognising when something isn’t necessarily a good idea. Case in point, deciding to walk to work the day there’s a rainstorm due. In fairness to him, the April sun is shining as he leaves his house and it only starts raining when he’s gone past the bus stop. It takes him over an hour, and he makes it into the university absolutely soaking wet. He peels off his layers and leaves them to dry on the rickety radiator under the window. He’s tempted to take off his shoes but though he doesn’t share an office, people are in and out of it so frequently it’s probably not advisable. By lunchtime, he’s got a headache from sneezing so much.

“Go home, Skywalker,” Jyn Erso says as she throws tissues at him from the doorway. “You’re just gonna make yourself worse staying here. There’s some sort of bug going around the department, and it seems like you’ve caught it.”

He sniffles, trying to focus his bleary eyes on his computer screen. “I have three classes this afternoon-”

“I’ll get someone to cover them, just go home,” she tells him, spinning on her heel and leaving him to his misery. A second later, her head pops around the door. “And don’t even think about walking.”

He gives in, gathering up his sodden coat and bag and makes his way towards the campus bus stop with the umbrella Wedge lends him. He gets splashed three times on the way and steps in two puddles; his shoes, still wet from his morning commute, squelch resentfully at what he’s put them through. 

The bus is too hot and takes forever to get near his neighbourhood, and when he finally gets off it splashes him as it drives away. He’s beyond miserable when he stumbles through the front door, sniffling and sneezing as Artoo jumps all over him. 

“Down, Artoo,” he begs, trying to pull off his sopping socks. “I know, I know, I’m home early, just calm down.”

Artoo whines, his tail thumping against Luke’s legs so hard he almost loses his balance. He leaves his coat on the floor beside his bag, shedding clothes as he stumbles down the hall to his bedroom. He collapses onto his bed and pulls the blankets around him until he’s cocooned himself in them. He feels Artoo hop up beside him and cuddle in.

_ Just a few hours _ , Luke thinks as he drifts off,  _ then I’ll wake up _ .

+

Maybe one of the reasons he’s not good at taking care of himself is because he’s used to being on his own. Yeah, he grew up with Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru, but Owen always looked at him like he was seeing a ghost, and not a friendly one. 

Luke remembers calling him  _ Dad _ once, because all the other kids in school were talking about their dads and Luke thought about how Owen and Beru cared for him, how they fed him and sang him to sleep - and he thought,  _ well, this must be it _ . Owen had sat him down when he said it and explained that though he was raising Luke, he wasn’t his father, he was only his uncle, and it was better that he remember that.

Aunt Beru had held him that night as he sobbed, wanting so desperately to change Owen’s mind, wanting Owen to love him. She got in a big fight with Owen the next day, he remembers, and the two of them didn’t speak for a fortnight. Luke had tiptoed past the sitting room each morning, trying not to wake his uncle up from where he slept on the couch.

“Come on, Luke,” Uncle Owen had finally said as Aunt Beru watched with a smile. “We’ll go down to the batting cages and I’ll teach you how to bat properly. Just the two of us.”

Owen didn’t last a year after Beru’s cancer took her; he just faded into silence until Luke woke up one morning and found he’d died in his sleep. Luke had cried for an hour before starting the calls and the organising and the murmured  _ thank yous _ when people offered their condolences.

Luke took off the day after the funeral, chasing down ghost stories until he found a living one.

+

There’s uproar, because of course there is.

Leia shows up at his house after leaving him nine voicemails. She’d gotten a text from Jyn saying that he’d gone home sick and had worried when she didn’t hear back from him. She drags him to hospital when she sees him in bed, pale and sweaty and altogether not the picture of health. The doctor diagnoses him with a chest infection that’s probably been brewing for days. He’s told to stay at home for a week, drink plenty of water, and try to take it easy.

Han and Leia are waiting for him when he leaves the room. He waves them off, saying that’s fine; Leia’s unimpressed face tells him all he needs to know.

“You were catatonic when I arrived,” she tells him. “You are definitely not fine.”

They drive him home, Leia getting him back into bed and setting his medication on the bedside table while Han gets some soup going in the kitchen. They finally leave, hours later, after making him promise to call if he needs them. Leia’s worry for him is usually well-hidden under her exasperation, but now he can really see it shining through.

“I’ll be fine, Leia,” he says, squeezing her fingers. “I always am.”

She nods hurriedly before taking off out the door without even saying goodbye. Han rolls his eyes up to heaven and squeezes Luke’s shoulder, ambling after her, leaving Luke all alone except for Artoo.

“Nice to have our peace and quiet back, huh Artoo?” he grins tiredly, reaching out to stroke his head.

The baleful glare he gets in return tells Luke exactly what the beagle thinks of him.

+

The days go by excruciatingly slowly. He emails Jyn everyday to check up on his students. On the third day she rings him and tells him in no uncertain terms that if he emails her one more time, she’s going to light his desk on fire. He resorts to emailing Cassian instead.

He spends his days mostly lying on the couch, watching TV and feeling miserable. He tries to go for a walk one day with Artoo and finds out that Leia is spying on him through his neighbours. He’s herded back into the house by Mr Ackbar and told that someone will come by later to walk Artoo. Luke supposes he should be surprised at the level of control his sister has over people, but he’s not. He mostly just feels sorry for Han and hopes he never does anything  _ too _ stupid.

It’s Thursday morning and Luke is still asleep when the doorbell rings. He blearily opens one eye and checks the clock. Eight thirty seven. He groans as it rings again. He staggers to the door, rubbing at his sleepy eyes and throws open the door. He’s not expecting the vision that’s standing on his doorstep. 

Tall, dark and handsome is one way of saying it. Luke gets an eyeful of tanned legs thanks to those indecent shorts and a well-defined chest that seems to be stuffed into the grey polo. The man’s arms are muscular and Luke wants nothing more than to be wrapped up in them, especially when he sees the guy’s face. Brown eyes that watch him carefully over the dark sunglasses perched on his nose, and a mustache that wouldn’t look out of place on a 70’s porn star. Luke’s starting to wonder if this is real or not. It’s definitely something he’d imagine.

“Luke Skywalker?” says the raspy voice. Luke can only hum distractedly. The man has an amused look on his face as he takes a pile of letters from the bag at his side. “I have these letters I need you to sign for.”

Luke’s confused for a second before he finally registers the helmet on the man’s head and the postal service logo on his shirt. “Oh,” he says, sounding like an idiot. “Oh! Yes, of course. Uh, let me grab a pen, hold on-”

A pen appears in front of him, held in beautifully long fingers. “Here you go,” the man murmurs. He panics for a second when he reaches out with his right hand only to realise he’s not wearing his prosthetic, but the man holds it out to his left side, his eyes only dipping briefly to where his right hand should be. He takes the pen, biting his lip before signing his name on the line. The man (Luke’s postman?) hands him the letters (Luke thinks he whimpers as their fingers brush) and smiles before turning to go.

“Wait!” Luke squeaks, panic rising in him. The man turns, one eyebrow raised. “I - do you -”

His words fail him and he’s left floundering on his doorstep. “I mean, um,” he gapes, wracking his brain to think of anything to say. “Uh, do you always wear the helmet?”

He wants to die. He wants someone to come and shoot him because he’s the biggest idiot that has ever lived. If Leia were here, she’d smack him for even daring to be related to her while being this stupid. The man squints at him, as if he’s wondering if Luke actually said those words.

“Of course I do,” he says. “It’s part of my work uniform.”

Luke can only smile faintly as the man walks to his bike, getting on it and cycling away without a second glance back. Luke thinks he can feel his heart collapsing in on itself as he shuts the front door. He leans back against the door, relishing the cool press of it against his bare skin.

His eyes fly open.  _ His bare skin _ . Sure enough, he’s wearing nothing but his boxer shorts. They’re not even nice ones; they’re  _ Batman _ underpants, of all things.

“I think I might die, Artoo,” he says mournfully.

Artoo looks at him, as if to say  _ really? _ and walks back to the kitchen. Luke sighs and goes back to bed, wondering if mortification is a good reason for never leaving his house again.

+

Luke never considered academia as a career choice. He’s too full of restless energy, too much of a free spirit - then he’s pulled back by Obi-Wan and the temptation of a scholarship. He only got through college because of what Owen and Beru had saved for him, so the offer is too good to pass on.

He’s halfway through his thesis when the old head of the department, a wacky guy called Yoda, says there’s funding for a PhD if his application is good enough. He gets through the first year without too much trouble, can see himself going further with this. 

Then he loses his hand.

The accident is too much to deal with on top of everything with his dad and he takes the year out. He moves in with Leia and goes to physical therapy and goes to actual therapy too. He eats his greens and does his exercises and can’t type for shit anymore. The thought of typing out sixty thousand words with one hand when he can only type out twenty five per minute is enough to make him cry. And he does cry, so many times, to himself and to Leia and even one time to the bus driver. 

It’s Ahsoka who gets him back on track. She comes over with a special keyboard for his computer and spends all day helping him figure it out. Then she comes over the next day, and the next, and the next. 

+

Luke is slightly more prepared the next morning when the doorbell rings. He’s wearing pyjama pants and a t-shirt this time, and he’s actually feeling reasonably functionable.

“I’m, uh, sorry about yesterday,” he says as he signs for his letters. “I’m home sick and I’m not altogether with it, if I’m honest.”

“I’ve seen worse,” Sexy Postman tells him with a small smile. Luke feels something warm curling up inside as he notices how his helmet pushes his ears out slightly. “Some people have answered the door in less.”

Luke blanches, thinking about some of his neighbours. “Better you than me,” he mutters, shuddering dramatically. He can’t help but grin when Sexy Postman laughs quietly. “These are work letters,” he adds, “so I’ll probably have a few more arriving on Monday.”

Sexy Postman just nods seriously. “I’ll deliver them to you safely.”

Luke bites his lip, clutching his letters to his chest. “Do you always work in this part of town?” he asks. “I usually head to work pretty early so I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before.”

“It’s just me,” the man nods. “I’ve got to get going, if that’s all?”

Luke manages to blurt out some sort of apology for keeping him so long and then stares out his front window like a creep as Sexy Postman cycles down the road. He takes out his phone, bringing it up to his ear as he waits for the call to be answered.

_ “What do you want, Luke? It better be important." _

“Jyn, I need a favour,” he says quickly. “Can you send me some of my files? I’ll pay you back. And make sure they’re registered post.”

\+ 

Leia calls in on Saturday morning and immediately starts fussing when she sees him out of bed. She eventually gives into his pleas for a quick walk around the neighbourhood with Artoo and after wrapping him in about seven layers, they take off.

“Seriously, Leia, it’s  _ April _ ,” he groans, tugging at the scarf she looped around his neck. “I think I have heat stroke.”

“Maybe if you looked after yourself better, we wouldn’t be in this situation,” she snips, before sighing. “I went to see Anakin yesterday, by the way. Same as always.”

Luke nods glumly, releasing a sigh of his own. “I’ll go see him when I’m better,” he says, “I don’t want anyone to catch what I have.”

A man smiles at him as he walks past, and Luke barely manages to nod his head politely in time. He feels much better than earlier in the week but he’s still so sluggish.

“Okay, what is going on with you?”

Luke blinks, shaking his head. “What are you talking about?” he asks, frowning when he sees Leia has stopped and has her hands on her hips. 

Her eyes are bulging as she stares at him. “Are you  _ serious? _ A literal male model just walked by and you didn’t even notice,” she nearly shouts. “Usually I have to tell you to pick your jaw up off the floor but you didn’t even seem to see this guy!”

He looks to where he can see the guy’s retreating form and then back to Leia’s incensed face. “Are… are you mad?” He’s not going to lie, he’s very confused.

“Luke, I love you,” she tells him seriously, “but the only time I’ve seen you  _ not _ check a guy out was when you…” She trails off, staring at him suspiciously. “Who is he?”

He does a double-take. “Who’s who?”

She rolls her eyes. “Who’s the guy you’re in love with now? You’re a complete flirt unless you have feelings for someone-”

“Woah woah woah!” he yelps. “Who said anything about feelings?”

“You have feelings for someone, I can tell,” she smirks as they round the corner to his house. “Now put aside the drama and just tell me!”

“I really don’t know what you’re talking about-”

“Stop lying to me and just  _ tell _ me-”

“- and even if I did like someone, it’s none of your business -”

“- you know that I’ll find out eventually -”

“- just let it go, Leia -”

“- please tell me it’s not Biggs -”

“It’s my postman!”

Leia, to her credit, is silent for a minute before she bursts into cackling laughter. He waits her out as he unlocks the front door and lets Artoo off his leash. Making his way into the kitchen, he puts on a pot of coffee to the dulcet tones of her shrieks. He sighs, once again wondering why he went looking for her when he could have had a life of peace, free from ridicule and mockery.

“Please explain to me how and why you’re in love with your postman,” she gasps, tears running down her cheeks.

“He had some letters I needed to sign for,” Luke tells her, steeling himself for more laughter, “and I answered the door in my boxers.”

It’s another few minutes before she can speak again, hiccuping as she tells him to go on.

“There’s nothing more to tell, really,” he sighs, blowing on the hot coffee. “He’s beautiful, I made a fool of myself - you know, how it usually goes.”

Leia tries to hide her grin as she rubs his shoulder consolingly. “Why not ask him out for coffee?” She snorts at the look he gives her. “Oh come on, what’s the worst that could happen? If he says no, you just pretend it never happened and move on.”

“Spoken like someone in a committed relationship,” he grumbles, yelping as she pokes him.

“Come on, back to bed,” she says with a smile, dragging him out of seat. “I’ll get out of your hair so that you can go back to dreaming about your postman.”

+

Luke tells himself that he sets an alarm for Monday morning purely to avoid the habit of sleeping in. It has nothing to do with the arrival of a certain postman. Nothing at all. 

He’s halfway through his coffee when Artoo starts barking at the door, and a second later the bell rings. He gets up slowly, makes his way to the door at a normal pace; he’s not rushing, because there’s nothing to rush to.

“Good morning,” Sexy Postman smiles when Luke opens the door. “How are you feeling?”

Luke swallows loudly. “Uh, what?”

Sexy Postman frowns in concern. “You said last week you were sick?”

“Oh!” Luke shakes himself, scratching the back of his neck. “Yeah, I’m feeling better but I’m still not fully with it, as you’ve probably guessed.” He can feel the heat rising to his cheeks with every moronic word that comes out of his mouth.

“Well, I’m glad to hear you’re a bit better, anyway,” Sexy Postman says, and  _ god, _ Luke really needs to learn his name. “You only have one to sign for today, though I can’t believe they’re making you work when you’re sick.”

“Thanks,” Luke smiles as he takes the pen. “And sorry for all this hassle; these are a bit time sensitive so I asked my coworker to send them to me.” He fidgets nervously for a second before blurting out, “I work at the university.”

“You’re lucky,” Sexy Postman tells him with a small smile. “The campus is beautiful; I bring my son for walks there on the weekends.”

Luke can’t help it as his eyes drop to the man’s left hand and he sees no ring. “You have a son? What age?”

Sexy Postman smiles softly, “He’s only four, but he’s an absolute menace. He loves the pond on campus - he likes trying to catch the frogs.”

Luke throws his head back laughs, not noticing Sexy Postman’s eyes following the movement. “Oh that’s too cute,” he manages to say. “I’d say there’s trouble when he does catch one.”

“You have no idea,” the other man murmurs, still smiling fondly. Luke opens his mouth, then hesitates. Sexy Postman quirks an eyebrow at him.

“I, uh, I just want to know your name. I can’t keep calling you ‘the postman’ in my head,” he says, like a liar.

There’s a moment of silence, then, “Din. My name is Din.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Din,” Luke smiles, and he’s damned if it’s not a little bit flirty. “I’m not sure if I have any letters coming tomorrow, and I’m due back in work on Wednesday so I don’t know if I’ll see you again for a while, and,” he takes a deep breath, “look, I don't usually do this, but I’m wondering if you’re single, and if you are, would you like to go for a coffee sometime?”

Din stares at him, eyes wide. “You want to go for coffee with  _ me?” _ Luke nods, biting his lip. 

The other man stares a second longer before saying, “When?”

+

Luke gets back to work on Wednesday, a spring in his step despite the lingering tiredness he feels. He steps into the building and is immediately accosted by Obi-Wan. 

“I hope you’re well enough to be back, Luke,” he says, a worried frown on his face. “Leia said you were still feeling rather low.”

“Contrary to popular belief,” Luke says drily, “I can take care of myself without Leia’s interference.”

That earns him a chuckle. “I apologise for doubting you,” the older man chuckles before raising an eyebrow. “And what’s this I hear about a handsome postman?”

“Shut it before someone hears you, old man,” Luke hisses, though his lips are fighting a smile. “This is the worst place in the world for gossip, you know that.”

“My lips are sealed,” Obi-Wan insists. “I’m afraid I must head on though, I have several meetings today that all require my full attention.”

“The joys of being the best in the field,” Luke grins cheekily. Obi-Wan levels a mock glare at him.

“If you’re not careful, this will be you in a few years,” is the warning he gets before they part ways. Luke ambles on down to the department, waving to everyone he sees.

He sighs in relief as he steps into his office, then lets out a sigh of despair at the mound of papers on his desk.

“Your students missed you,” Jyn teases from his doorway as he stares at the carnage that awaits him. “I swear, if I get asked for one more update on your behalf, I’ll fail the entire group.”

He chuckles as he settles into his desk. “Thanks for everything, Jyn. I don’t know what I’d have done without you.”

She only hums. “Yes, you’d have been lost without those vital papers I posted to you.”

He goes still, refusing to look up. “Yeah, thanks. I got them on Monday, it was really helpful.”

Jyn walks slowly towards his desk, perching on the edge of it as she levels a knowing look his way. “It’s funny, because they really didn’t seem all that important,” she muses, “but then I bumped into Leia on Sunday -” he lets out a loud groan and she smirks triumphantly, “- and she happened to mention something about your postman-”

He sits up with a glare. “ _ Yes _ , I have a handsome postman-” she punches the air in victory, “ _ yes, _ I got you to send those last documents so that I’d see him,” he snarls as her face grows brighter with viscous delight, “and  _ yes _ , I did ask him out.”

Her face drops in astonishment. “You  _ what _ ?”

He gets up and heads out into the hall to the photocopier, Jyn trailing behind him in confusion. “I asked him out, and he said yes. We’re going for coffee.”

“But Luke,” she protests, absolutely bewildered. “You can’t even talk to men. I mean, you can talk to men, but not one’s you’re interested in! What did you even say?”

He sniffs haughtily. “I can so talk to men,” he snips. “And I just asked him if he’d want to go for coffee. That’s it.”

He thinks he’s broken her. She’s just staring at him, as if wondering where Luke has gone and who replaced him with a semi-functional adult. To be honest, Luke is kind of wondering that too.

+

He ignores Leia’s frantic calls for the rest of the week, knowing he’ll be subjected to both her demands for more information and her overbearing amusement that he’s actually going on a date. Really, he’s not that much of a disaster.

Thursday afternoon has him rushing out of work and avoiding Jyn’s knowing look. Cassian and Obi-Wan are deep in conversation as he jogs past them; he thinks he’s escaped until Obi-Wan calls after him, “Have fun on your date, Luke!” The three masters students look overjoyed at this information even as Luke goes scarlet.

He goes to the bus stop on the northern end of campus and gets the bus into the city, trying to stop his leg from jittering so much. The old lady sitting beside him takes one look at his nervous smile, blushing face and carefully brushed hair before rolling her eyes and muttering fondly about ‘young love.’

He hops off the bus and checks his watch, cursing the time as he breaks into a jog. He rounds the corner and sees Din waiting outside the café. He’s out of his uniform, wearing jeans and a plaid shirt under a fleece. He smiles shyly when he spots Luke approaching.

“Sorry,” Luke huffs out, “the bus was delayed.”

“It’s okay,” Din murmurs, “I’m not here long.”

They head inside and order, and after a brief dispute over who’s paying ( _ “You can get it next time,” Din says) _ , Luke heads over to a table hidden away in the corner to wait for Din and the drinks.

“Here you go,” Din says as he slides onto his seat. Luke thanks him, wincing as he takes a sip and burns his tongue. It makes Din chuckle though, so Luke counts it as a win.

Conversation flows easily between them; Din seems to come out of his shell more and more, and Luke finds that he’s not doing his usual nervous rambling. They talk about Luke’s work, Din’s network of friends that are basically his family, and a million and one other things. It’s comfortable in a way that Luke’s ever felt with his closest friends, and it should be surprising but it’s not. It’s just good.

An hour passes, then two, and then the barista is telling them they’re closing up soon, if they want one last drink. She waves off their apologies and smiles at them, saying she thinks they’re a cute couple. Luke goes absolutely crimson, stammering and stuttering at the girl; Din isn’t much better, a flushed face and averted eyes. She just laughs at them and tells them to take their time.

They leave soon after, hands brushing as they walk down the street. It’s still bright out, will be for another hour or so, and they decide to go walk along the river. Their hands keep brushing until Din takes a deep breath and grabs Luke’s hand in his. Luke has to bite his lip to stop him from squealing.

They walk hand in hand to the river and sit on one of the benches. As it gets darker, they turn to more serious things. Luke doesn’t go into full detail about his family - there’s a lot he doesn’t say, about his father, about his aunt and uncle, about how he sometimes feels like he’s all alone in the universe - but he does talk about finding Leia and coming to terms with this new idea of family. Din tells him about meeting his son, Grogu, and the ordeal he went through to adopt him, though Luke can tell he’s leaving out a lot. 

“I’d like you to meet him,” Din says quietly, his thumb rubbing circles on the back of Luke’s hand, eyes focused on something in the distance, “but he gets attached really easily.”

Luke can hear the unspoken words, notices the slight fear in Din’s voice. “I’d love to meet him, too,” Luke replies, his voice soft. “I’d like to tell him how much I like his dad, and how much I hope he sticks around.”

Din looks back at him then, a hopeful curve on his lips. Luke takes a deep breath and leans in to press his lips to Din’s. He can feel Din’s smile through the kiss, and can’t help but smile himself. He deepens the kiss, shivering as Din pulls him closer, and he’s drowning and he doesn’t care.

They eventually break the kiss, staring at each other in the evening light, chests heaving. There are a lot of things they’ll have to learn about each other, but Luke isn’t worried. They've got the time. He’s happy to just sit on this bench with this handsome man beside him. Everything else can wait. 

Luke leans in for another kiss. Din meets him halfway.

**Author's Note:**

> there will possibly be more where this came from. I haven't decided yet.


End file.
